The Bollywood comedy franchise Hera Pheri faces a major crisis as veteran actor Paresh Rawal abruptly exits Hera Pheri 3, leading to a Rs 25 crore lawsuit from producer Akshay Kumar. Rawal’s team claims he “did not shoot a single scene,” contradicting the production’s allegations of breach of contract.
Akshay Kumar’s production company, Cape of Good Films, sent a legal notice to Rawal after he publicly announced his departure. The notice demands compensation for financial losses, citing expenses on cast, crew, and a partially shot trailer. Lawyer Pooja Tidke stated Rawal’s exit caused “reputational damage” and disrupted schedules.
Rawal’s team denies unprofessionalism, calling the claims “laughable.” A source close to the actor said, “The film hadn’t even started. There was a promo shoot, not a film schedule. He exited long before the tent was even pitched.” They emphasized Rawal’s four-decade career built on “honesty and discipline”.
Director Priyadarshan, a long-time collaborator with Rawal, expressed shock: “Paresh was like family. He didn’t give any explanation.” He confirmed Rawal participated in a teaser shoot but left without warning. Akshay Kumar reportedly had “tears in his eyes” over the fallout.
Suniel Shetty, Rawal’s co-star, revealed the actor agreed to discuss the exit privately. “We three make a great combination,” Shetty said, adding the team was “charged” about the project.
The dispute centers on conflicting accounts of Rawal’s involvement. The production insists he shot 3.5 minutes of footage and accepted a Rs 11 lakh signing amount. Rawal’s team argues the main shoot was slated for 2026, and his exit preceded formal production.
Fans reacted strongly to Rawal’s exit. One tweeted, “No Hera Pheri without Babu bhaiya!” Another joked, “We’ll crowdsource funds if fees were the issue!”. Industry experts suggest the conflict could’ve been resolved privately. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh said, “Akshay and Paresh should’ve sat across the table” instead of escalating legally.
The future of Hera Pheri 3 remains uncertain. Priyadarshan confirmed the original trio shot a scene and IPL teaser before Rawal’s exit. Akshay Kumar, who bought the franchise rights, faces financial risks if the project stalls.
Credits: Compiled from reports by PTI, Hindustan Times, India Today, and Mid-Day.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
